Directed by:
Ben AffleckCinematography:
Robert ElswitCast:
Ben Affleck, Rebecca Hall, Jon Hamm, Jeremy Renner, Blake Lively, Slaine, Owen Burke, Titus Welliver, Pete Postlethwaite, Chris Cooper, Gary Galone, Peter Looney (more)VOD (4)
Plots(1)
As he plans a job that could result in his gang’s biggest score ever, a longtime thief plans a way out of the life and the town while dodging the FBI agent looking to bring him and his bank-robbing crew down. In addition to heading an electrifying cast, Ben Affleck also directed and co-wrote this suspenseful, critically acclaimed crime thriller that unfolds - and often explodes - across gritty Boston locations. (Warner Bros. Home Entertainment)
(more)Videos (2)
Reviews (10)
A decent spectacle, but a few odd illogicalities (the hero never found out himself what happened to his mother), clichés and an overly fairytale ending hurt it somewhat in my eyes. I liked Gone Baby Gone a lot more, and above all it was a film I had to think about for a long time. The Town has nowhere near that impact. But Ben Affleck is a really good director, and especially when it comes to action he does a professional job.
()
It is more than obvious that this is Affleck looking up in awe at Mann’s Heat. And it is already clear that he definitely has the talent to film a similar, timeless masterpiece. The Town is not yet that masterpiece, not even in the extended version (I haven’t seen the regular one, but I certainly wouldn’t cut even a minute off the longer one). For that this is too much of a Heat beta version 0.5, but... But this is the only negative I can think of.
()
The similarity of the plot with Heat bothered me. Otherwise, The Town is a film that needs to mature a bit, just like its more famous predecessors. Heist crime is a genre that cannot be devoured like candy and watched every Saturday throughout the first year, everything needs to be “felt” somehow. And the bluish camera filters, the behaviour of the main characters, the sense of their actions, as well as the weapons, the “mafia sector”, and other things around – they are directly tied to the time when the film was made, and only with the passage of time and the addition of a bit of sentiment and perspective can one truly enjoy it. Right now, The Town is somewhat similar to a young wine, immature somehow. It is a classic story, but Ben Affleck has heart and it shows in every other shot. As a film, The Town is well executed, the action is gripping, and the catharsis is not lacking either. And do people know, or foresee, how it will all end? Can we have a variation in such a laid-out film that we haven't seen somewhere else already? Right now, I think we have exhausted almost everything. Don’t expect something original, better focus on other qualities in the given genre, and this film undoubtedly has them.
()
We’ve seen this scheme many times before, and sometimes better (at one point even the main character watches "the" bit on TV), but I like Affleck's sympathetic direction, which doesn't rush the archetypal characters through the plot, but without unnecessary subterfuge, matter-of-factly, and engagingly. The fact that at times it is too tightly gripped in the clenches of tired templates is unfortunate, especially in the moments when the more adept viewer can guess the next steps of the characters before they do. Regardless, that certain old-fashioned style only serves it well. I’m looking forward to Affleck's next film immensely.
()
Ben Affleck scored again for me, this time twice over. I can't even decide if he was better as an actor or director. The screenplay is admittedly corny a few times and not brimming with originality, but I still enjoyed it. I gobbled this film up from beginning to end. The action was spread out evenly and because of that there was no time for boredom. The dramatic scenes were not needlessly thrown in and the dialogue was believable enough. Additionally, I was pleased with Blake Lively's minor role and the impressive music throughout. A very strong 4 stars.
()
Ads